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Apple’s Maps Fiasco

by James Kenny
On what is supposed to be a triumphant week for Apple with the release of their new flagship iPhone 5 and the updated iOS 6, there is one glaring problem that has many of Apple’s customers up in arms, the updated Maps app for iOS 6. Since the release of iOS 6 to the public on Wednesday,...

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Apple is now rolling out its latest software updates for iOS 10, macOS Sierra, and watchOS. Each release promises to fix some bugs and improve overall performance.

iOS 10.2.1 has been in beta for several weeks now, and its finally available for all. It has only came out a little less than a month after Apple released the more major iOS 10.2 update, so the primary fix is bugs and performance. If you want to test this new software but dont have an iPhone or dont want to spend all that money, you can rent an iPhone today!

macOS Sierra 10.12.3 has some significant updates, here are a few;

Resolved problems with PDF documents

Improves automatic graphics switching on MacBook Pro

Fixed Safari bug that purged MacBook Pro battery life

watchOS 3.1.3 had a fairly minor release focused on bug fixes and performance improvement. Some of the apps that got fixes include Activity, Calendar, Maps, Messages, and notifications.

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Apple will launch some new MacBook Pros later this year powered by Intel’s next-generation Kaby Lake processors and up to 32GB of desktop-class RAM, rather than the latest MacBook Pro processor the Skylake which maxes out at 16 GB of RAM and doesn’t support low power RAM in larger configurations. If you would like to rent any apple products contact rentacomputer.com . according to one reliable analyst new 12-inch MacBook models with Kaby Lake processors will enter mass production early this spring with 16 GB of RAM option could be added as a high-end or built-to-order configuration. The new 15-inch MacBook will include 32 GB of RAM and will enter mass production in early September.

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Apple is expected to unveil three new iPad devices this spring, but none of them will cater to fans of the iPad mini. If you would like to rent ipads contact rentacomputer.com

According to one analyst, the company is focusing its efforts on updating the 9.7 inch iPad and the 12.9 inch iPad Pro, and on introducing a new model with a 10-to 10.5 inch display. The only model introduced in 2016 was the 9.7 inch iPad Pro, while the 12.9 inch iPad Pro and iPad mini haven’t seen an update since 2015. The iPad Air 2 has also been the same since October 2014.

In addition to a refreshed 12.9 inch iPad Pro, Apple is expected to introduce a brand new model with a 10-to 10.5 inch display that could replace the 9.7 inch iPad Pro. A new 9.7 inch iPad will also be available, however it will be more expensive.

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“Finder for AirPods” first dropped on the App Store about a week ago and used Bluetooth signal to track down missing headphones, but just a few days later it is gone. Finder for AirPods wanted to help users dodge the $69 replacement fee that Apple charges for just ONE replacement earbud, however soon after Apple approved the app and allowed it to be published, Apple suddenly decided it should be shut down. The company didn’t provide the app’s developers with any reason for its removal other than its “not appropriate.”

Some speculate they shut down the app due to unstable signal if you are on one floor and an AirPod is on another, or similar problems such as the app being useless if the missing AirPod is our of Bluetooth range. So if u left the AirPods on your desk at work, the app cant help you. People say this is a reason for the app being terminated due to upset customers after paying the $3.99 for the app.

If you purchased Finder for AirPods, you can request a refund through iTunes. Simply click “View My Account…” in the “Account” menu, choose “See All” under “Purchase History,” then locate the Finder for AirPods app and click the “Report a Problem” link.

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In December 2016, after months of false starts, apple finally announces it has a secured deal with China Mobile to bring the iPhone to the worlds largest telecom company. With over 760 million potential iPhone customers the deal is Apples most important yet in growing its brand to china, a market that Tim Cook says will soon be Apples biggest.It was a move that had been long in the making, Apple began negotiating with China Mobile since the first iPhone launched in 2007.Seems like this deal couldn’t have come at a better time with the Chinese new Year coming up and countless Chinese customers who are growing and enthusiastic for iPhones.

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We are arriving fashionably late with this information, but it is still important to know. So my fellow consumer, prepare to arm yourself with the power of a refreshed intellect.

If you are like me, and for some reason have not yet upgraded to iOS 9.3.5, you will soon have two reasons for doing so. The first ,and most obvious, reason to update is that iOS 10 will soon be available. However; if you do not want to upgrade to iOS10, and have not yet upgraded to iOS 9.3.5, you should know that this update is essential to keeping all personal information on your Apple device secure. If your Apple device hasn’t already been updated, I strongly urge you to do so now. To update go to Settings > General > Software Update.

According to reports from New York Times and Motherboard, an undetectable malware program has been found that can install and uninstall itself without the smartphone owner even knowing, and it is able to access your camera and microphone making it extremely dangerous. If you receive suspicious texts you shouldn’t click on any links that have been put into the message. As soon as the link is clicked the malware instantly starts tracking any personal data and with the growing dependence on smartphones, more and more people rely on them to hold key personal data. In addition to the ability to access your iPhone’s camera and microphone, the spyware was also capable of accessing messages, emails, logs, and more from apps such as Gmail, Facebook, Skype, WhatsApp, Viber, FaceTime, Calendar, and much more.

It took merely 10 days for Apple to release an update to combat the holes pointed out to them by Citizen Lab and Lookout. Though this may seem like a long time, when compared to Android this update came out at seemingly lightspeed. This is mainly because there are tens of thousands of distinctive Android devices as opposed to a fraction of the amount of devices coming from Apple, which furthermore all run on the same core software.

This incident goes to show you that even the all-praised for security Apple devices are even vulnerable to malware and security threats from time to time. The best way to keep your device secure is to keep your phone updated. If it hadn’t been for the folks at Citizen Lab, an interdisciplinary lab based at the Munk School of Global Affairs at the University of Toronto, this spyware would probably still exist.

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The month of June is a great time to be an Apple user. The Worldwide Developers Conference has announced many new and exciting things for people who own Apple products to look forward to.

Among the announcements made at the Worldwide Developers Conference was a reveal of 10 new features and design choices for the release of iOS 10. We’ve compiled a summary of the announced 10 new features for you, which are:

Apple has designed a new look for the lockscreen, and 3D touch notifications will allow you to perform a variety of actions directly from your lockscreen.

Siri will be made open for developers, meaning that you might finally be able to make siri useful in apps you actually enjoy using.

Apple will add a function called QuickType. QuickType can predict how you want to continue or finish your sentences that you are typing based on the context of the sentence.

For you avid picture takers, Apple has announced two features. The first of these is called Places, which shows you where you’ve taken your pictures on a world map so that you can requiesce on memories past. The second feature is Advanced Computer Vision, which allows your iDevice to remember you and your friend’s faces and sort people into their own photo albums.

Redesign for Apple Maps intended to make it easier for users to access details about locations they are going to before they get there.

Apple Music has entered the music streaming field in a big way. One thing that stood out was the price point of $14.99 for a family plan of up to six people (This plan does require that you have iCloud Family Sharing for your account). However, if you happen to be flying solo, Spotify and Apple Music cost the same amount per month for your subscription: $9.99 per month excluding tax.

Redesign for Apple News, including a cleaner interface and easier to sort categories. The Apple News app will also present you stories based on what you’ve already read.

Additional support added for the Homekit application involving house accessories including cameras and doorbells.

Apple has decided to make transcripts for your voicemail messages. If these transcripts work as intended they will definitely be a neat feature. Apple also announced a sort of alert system developed through third parties to help prevent you from answering unwanted phone calls.

The Messages app will receive several improvements. For starters, the app will now show links that do not look like clunky garbage. Instead of your friends or family members seeing extremely long lines of text for links, they will now see a picture from the website along with a title instead. Videos will also be improved significantly, videos sent in the Messages app will now be shown and played inside of the message you sent them. Of course, we couldn’t talk about messages without at least mentioning emojis. Emojis will be displayed 3 times larger in iOS 10, and Apple has decided to give you emoji suggestions as you type your messages, and even suggestions to replace certain words with emojis after you’ve typed your message if you click on the emoji button.

These are ten new exciting iOS 10 features that Apple announced during the Worldwide Developers Conference. Application Developers already have access to iOS 10 in the form of a beta, and the general public should have access to the iOS10 beta starting in July. For those of you wanting to play it safe and wait for a final version, iOS 10 is expected to fully launch in September.

Need to rent a large quantity of Apple devices for a reasonable price? We can hook you up, just click here.

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With Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference coming up, speculation and interest in the newest iPhone, the iPhone 7, is increasing, and consumers are asking an important question. Will Apple’s next iPhone be a complete bust? Based on leaked information combined with speculation by a myriad of tech journalists, reports aren’t looking favorable for Apple’s latest gadget. While online leaks can be exciting and fun for the consumer, Apple’s iPhone is perhaps the biggest victim of online leaks out of any tech device out there.

Due to online information leaks, consumers have access to the presumed specifications of the iPhone 7. By the time Tim Cook finally “releases” the iPhone on stage this fall, the researched consumer might not have anything left to discover about the device. That being said, don’t expect anything too exciting for the iPhone 7. Based on what leaked information and rumors suggest, the next iPhone will look very similar to the iPhone 6S. It will come in two sizes, of course have better cameras, a faster processor, run iOS 10, ditch the headphone jack and have less antenna lines on the backside. The 5.5-inch model will most likely come with two cameras and a smart connector.

Apple is considering switching to a different redesign cycle. That is, instead of releasing a new redesign every two years, it may be three years until you get your hands on an iPhone 8. But don’t worry, as unexciting and old as the iPhone 7 looks, information on the iPhone 8 is already being leaked. It is rumored that the iPhone 8 will feature an all-glass design and a Touch ID sensor integrated right into the display!

Need a large quantity of Apple devices but don’t want to pay a large price? Why not try an Apple rental today?

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If you’ve been waiting patiently for Apple Music on Sonos then your wait is over! Sonos is making good on a promise it made back in June and stated on Monday that Apple’s new streaming music service will debut on the company’s wireless speakers before the end of 2015. Apple Music will become available as a public beta on Sonos starting December 15th with general availability starting in the beginning of 2016. According to Apple Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue, “We’re big fans of Sonos. We’ve been looking forward to this.”

Sonos will allow people to access Apple Music’s For Your, My Music, New, and Radio from Apple Music. The only thing you won’t have access to is Connect. Connect is a social feature that is designed to link artists with their fans. The focus here is curated streaming, which Sonos co-founder and CEO John MacFarlane says is the driving factor behind most of the music listening that happens on Sonos speakers these days.

According to a statement from MacFarlane, “Well over 90% of the music people listen to on Sonos speakers is from streaming services. We think Apple Music is going to be a catalyst that will raise that percentage even higher. What we’ve found is that as Sonos owners discover streaming services like Apple Music they use the local collections they have on their home computers and cell phones less and less.”

Sonos, for the longest time, has offered a very large menu of streaming music services. The addition of Apple Music seems like something that should have been included from the get go, especially considering its Beats Music predecessor had been available on Sonos since January of 2014 until it was shut down in November. So what was the call for the wait? Why was Apple not offering Apple Music right from the start? Well, according to Cue, “It’s important to get the integration right the first time out. Apple has a high bar for this stuff; So does Sonos. Apple Music isn’t even six months old yet, so this really did not take much time at all.”

Sonos just debuted a new flagship speaker, the PLAY:5, in addition to a very niffty speaker-tuning app called Trueplay. This speaker is the latest non-Apple product to debut Apple Music over the past couple months. Back in the beginning of November, Apple brought the Apple Music streaming service to Android, which marked the first time the company had ever offered one of its services on one of Google’s mobile platforms. If you want to know how to join the Apple Music beta on Sonos then click here.

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Apple CEO Tim Cook caused many a MacBook user to scream out in anguish recently when he insisted that he couldn’t see a single reason for anyone to buy a PC anymore, especially since Apple just released the iPad Pro, the latest iPad model that comes complete with pencil and yoga-mat keyboard. With Cook pushing the iPad Pro and saying that things like iMacs and MacBook Pros were obsolete, many people started to question their very existence of their Apple products. Everyone except Steve Wozniak that is.

Wozniak, who co-founded Apple with Steve Jobs back in the day, was speaking at a conference organized by New Relic recently where he was quoted saying that he continues to be “more of a laptop-based guy.” For the Woz, the flexibility of a laptop contrasts that of a tablet which he believes “has been limited for me”. Wozniak isn’t alone here either. Senior Vice President of Internet Software and Services for Apple Eddy Cue recently told CNN that he likes the iPad Pro because “I consumer a lot more than I create,” rather than Cook’s insistence that this was now a productivity tool.

Now let’s be real for a second. I highly doubt that Cook believes that the PC market is officially dead. I mean, if he really did believe that then why would he launch new and tantalizing MacBooks? Reports for Apple’s latest MacBook line have been hailed as a “groundbreaking design” by many reviewers. No the real reason behind Cook’s comments is that he is trying to sell what he wants to sell right now, a giant iPad that has the potential to reverse the 20% year-on-year decline in Apple’s tablet sales. Naturally, neither Cook nor Apple has responded to requests for comment.

Wozniak doesn’t really seem to be on the flashy new tech bandwagon. When Apple released the Apple Watch Wozniak wasn’t 100% behind it. He stated that he sometimes forgets to put on his own Apple Watch and realizes that he doesn’t really miss it all that much. However, he did agree that the device was improving though it is still unclear exactly how he thinks it is getting better. All-in-all, the Woz has been pretty critical of Apple lately. Wozniak was also quoted saying, “I don’t like being in the Apple ecosystem. I don’t like being trapped. I like being independent.”

Wozniak has been known to really enjoy some Android products alongside with Apple ones. Just last year he suggested that Apple should release an Android smartphone. In terms of his commitment to laptops, it is very easy to believe that tech developers release new product forms that have the sole purpose of making money. One of the bigger problems with the iPad is the fact that many people believe they already know precisely what the iPad is good for, and what it isn’t good for, and feel that older models do just as fine as the newer ones.

I really admire the fact that Wozniak isn’t going along with the iPad Pro craze from Apple just for the sake of Apple loyalty. Steve Wozniak has been a lot of things in his life, nonetheless of which is an independent man of his own fruition, which is something this world needs more of.